Forbidden fruit
by ZurineCrystal
Summary: "Joey it's emma!"... "I know...And that makes it so hard..."
1. Reunion

**Author's note: OK it's dangerous grounds. All I've written is Harry Potter Fanfictions. I love friends (who doesn't? Yeh?) So anyway read this and you be the judge.. Let me know alright? Should I continue? Should I not?**

**LOVE ZC**

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><p>"Mom!" The 20 years old Emma Greene Geller called as she raced down the stairs. Her face heated, her blond hair swirling behind her like rays of sunshine she stormed towards the living room where she assumed her mother was.<p>

"Mom!" she said again standing beside her mother, fuming like a raging bull.

"What is it Emma?" Rachel Greene said lounging in her comfortable couch blissfully drinking coffee while going through her magazine. Yes her magazine. "Greene" magazine, an idea of her dear old friend Phoebe Buffay Hannigan, was surprisingly a hit and had been one of the highest ranking magazine all over world for half a decade. Rachel Greene could not be happier.

"Mom!" Emma, again. Rachel placed her magazine next to her on the couch before turning to face her eldest daughter.

"What is it Emma?" She asked in a no nonsense tone.

"It's Ella! She is doing it again!" She whined.

"Well why don't you just ask her nicely…" Rachel began, already tired of the conversation.

"It won't work mom. It never works. I hate her mom. Tell her stop wearing my clothes. I don't share my clothes with her" Rachel sighed. "Or boyfriends" Emma added as an afterthought.

"Well that's just ridiculous" Ella said entering the living room. Her raven black hair flying behind her she stormed in with deep blue eyes glaring at her sister.

"Ella! Emma! Oh I won't have this. Ross!" Rachel screamed.

"Ah what do we have here?" Monica Geller asked entering the living room followed by her brother and her husband.

"Typical Geller-Greene row" Chandler Bing said giving a hug to each girl. "I always kept telling you guys that nothing good will come from you both marrying"

"Oh stop. You wanted us to get together" Ross Geller added as he came and put his arm around his wife.

"Oh yes who wouldn't after hearing you claim your utmost true love for one another. _We were on a break. No we weren't. Yes we were_" Monica shushed him as the girls started laughing. Ross had turned red in the face.

"That was almost 30 years ago and we really…" He began.

"So where is Erika and Jack?" Rachel asked Monica changing the topic.

"Oh they stopped by at the supermarket to buy some food"

"Why? are we having someone over?" Rachel asked. It was not often that she get to see her best friend and sister in law.

"No actually we are going on a road trip"

"Oh where?" Ross asked interested.

"New York" Came the voice from the doorway. Phoebe Buffay Hannigan was standing there with her husband Mike Hannigan and their children Regina Buffay Hannigan and Consuela Buffay Hannigan.

"New York? Why?" Rachel asked as she made her way towards them, hugging Lisa tightly.

"Wow You guys! This is such a pleasant surprise. It's almost like the old times!" Rachel said letting go of Phoebe.

"It is, isn't it?"

"Well why are we going to New York?" Emma asked. She had a bad feeling about this.

"Well…" Monica said grinning widely sharing a secret look with her husband.

"Our Joey has grown up" He said excitedly.

"Grown up...what…NOOO" Rachel said catching on.

"No? No what? Grown up? What are you guys talking about?" Ross said confused.

"It means…"Phoebe began but Emma beat her to it.

"It means that Joey is getting married" She said dully.

"Finally" Mike said grinning.

"Oh" Ella said grasping Emma's hang tightly. Ella was the only person who knew what Emma must be truly feeling right now. Emma squeezed her hand tightly as her eyes brimmed.

"Oh honey! Oh look Emma" Ross said coming over and hugging Emma with a wide grin on his face.

"Happy tears" he told others while they all nodded. Rachel wasn't so sure…

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><p><strong>Well what do you think? :D <strong>


	2. Not alright

Emma kept staring out the window the whole ride to New York. Ella tried to engage her in conversations to keep her attention elsewhere, yet Emma stubbornly refused to acknowledge them. She wished her brother was there with her. He would know the right thing to say. Yes, Ben would understand.

"Is Ben joining us?" Emma asked her father, trying hard to sound as cheerful as the rest of the party.

"Oh! I don't know" Her father said before he took out his phone and calling someone. Ben probably. "He's on his way" Ross confirmed after hanging up the phone.

Good. She needed him. Emma once again went to back to her brooding. She knew this day would come. _He _told her several times. She should have been ready. She was not. Oh god she was not.

_"Emma" He said in a warning tone. _

_"Don't! You don't get to do this" She pleaded._

_"I do! I can't! This is wrong" _

_"How can it be wrong?"_

_"Because I'm Joey. And...and you're my best friend's baby girl"_

"Emma" Rachael called her daughter. "Can you help me with this?" She asked giving Emma her files. "Anything to add?" She smiled at her.

"Oh" Emma, still reeling from the taunting memory, tried to get a grip on herself before starting to go through the documents. It was the latest issue of the "Greene" magazine, still in its baby stages.

Emma Greene Geller was her mother's daughter through and through. She resembled her mother in both looks and personality. Not only that, but she shared her mother's passion for fashion. Though her mother chose to be more involved in the designing part of this world, Emma preferred to be in the limelight. She preferred to do modelling. It broke her father's heart, but he couldn't complain. Not that much anyway. If Emma was her mother's daughter, Ella was daddy's girl through and through. _Freak!_

"I'll re-do the summer brands if I were you" Emma said genuinely. Work. Work was good. Work kept her thoughts from going back to him.

"Yeah I was wondering about that" Rachel agreed, frowning down at the papers.

"I still can't believe you brought your work on this trip" Phoebe said, miffed.

"Oh well not everyone has a life as awesome as ours" Mike said grinning as he gripped his wife's arm tightly.

"Ohh yeah. That is true. We have fun" Phoebe said. "We do!" Mike agreed.

"Oh hey c'mon! This is fun" Rachel argued.

"Yuh-huh" Ross said sarcastically.

"Ok so I'm a workaholic. I do take my work seriously" Rachel defended herself. "Hey back me up" She demanded her daughters. Emma smiled. Ella snorted.

"Yes yes we all knew that when she was a waitress didn't we?" Chandler said with a straight face. "Hey how does her coffee taste like now?"

"Wouldn't know" Ella answered.

"Uhhhmmm…" Emma began.

"Horrible" Ross said, voice a little high pitched. His face twisted into grimace.

"…yeah" Emma ended. Her father has surmised her thoughts perfectly in one syllabus. Her mother's coffee was horrible.

"That's what I thought!" Chandler said.

"NOT as a waitress. But ever since I joined Bloomingdale's I've been completely professional and perfectly perfect."

"Hey Rach!" Monica called her.

"Yeah"

"How's Ted doing?" She snickered.

Even Emma had to laugh at that. She had heard enough from her parents to know who Ted was. Her mother's hot assistant. With whom she had a brief affair with. Rachel never kept any secret from her. She told Emma everything. Her parents, their friends, they were such a happy group. Even…even Joey. He was a totally different person when he hangs out with them. Fun. And adorably naïve. His friends were his family. Emma hated that.

Emma hated that he was friends with her parents. Emma hated that. They did not have a future together _only _because of that. Only for that reason. And now she was losing him. Forever. To someone else. Another woman would call Joey hers. And she hated that.

_"Hey I brought shoes for you" Emma said pointing to the shoes she now held in her arms. _

_"Thank god Ems! You're a life saver!" Joey said hugging her tightly. _

_"Hurry up! You have to go up there"_

_"I don't know if I can do this" Joey looked into her eyes, his own eyes showing unbridled fear._

"_Hey! Hey Joey. You can do this" She took his hands and tightly grasped them. "You're an amazing actor. You can do this"_

_"Yeah but…what if…what if I messed up? What if I…What if I go back to being Joey Tribbiani – the struggling actor?_

_"But you're not. You're Joey Tribbiani – The famous actor. The heart throb of every girl, every woman all over this world. You're Joey Tribbiani – my Hero." _

A tear dropped from Emma's eyes as she recalled that moment. It was a huge day for Joey. She had been there. With him. She, no one else. Just her. She still remembered the way he clutched her hand one last time before going into set where they hosted _The late night show._ Her Joey. Her joy! She wiped another tear as it joined it sister in their lonely path down her face. She would not cry. Joey would not want her to cry.

"We're here" Chandler said as the big van came to a halt. They really were there.

"Holly Molly!" Ella whispered stepping out of the vehicle. Emma joined her. She wasn't surprised. She had been here. Countless time. She had _lived _here. No, she wasn't surprised. Joey Tribbiani was a famous actor. Of course he would live in a condo.

Rachel who stood beside her laughed giddily before following her friends towards the entry. Emma and Ella followed close behind.

"Emma" She heard someone shout from the other side of the road. She turned around and for the first time that day, smiled a genuine smile. Ben was here. Oh thank god. He rushed towards her engulfing her in warm hug. She held on, not wanting to let go.

"You ok?" He whispered in her ears. She shook her head. No. She wasn't alright. Ben sighed but didn't say anything. He finally let go of her and engulfed their younger sister in a big bone crushing.

"How have you been minion?" He teased her.

"Better than you, you big oaf!" She retorted back grinning, still clinging onto him.

"Shall we?" Ben asked Emma as he held out a hand out to her.

Ben was here. She will be alright. With a courage that she didn't feel, and a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, Emma took her brother's hand. "We shall" She muttered. By now the rest of the clan had gone up. The 3 siblings entered the the lift, cleared by the security. Emma's heart started beating fast as the lift made its way up. Her hand started sweating, and she almost started hyperventilating. Ben's comforting hand resting lightly at the small of her back, was the only thing that kept her panic attack at bay.

At last they reached their destination. Floor 26. Talking a calming breathe Emma waited for the lift doors to open and face…face him.


	3. So sorry

Hey everyone. This message is for all the charming readers that have been wondering and hence asking me questions on whether or not I've given up on these fics. Here is my answer. No. I have not given up on any of the fics I've written so far. I will update as soon as I'm done with the exams. Believe me, oh my fellow friends...life as a Med student is NOT easy... :/ I will update and I will update very soon. So just hang in there...And don't give up on these fics.

**Blissful Torment:** How can i possibly give up on this? It's my baby! The things I've planned for this story... *laughs evilly* **Soulmate: **Love the Marauders. So no. Of course you will get to read more of this. **Forbidden fruit: **Dangerous waters I tell you. Still I haven't given up on sweet Emma and Joey Nor should you ;) Oh and just so you know. As soon a I update all these fics I will write a **FELTSON Drabble/one shot **to make up for my absence. :D In the mean time enjoy with the fics that I have completed. Love you all ZC 


	4. In darkness we stay

**See. I haven't given up on it. ** **Sorry.** **A million times sorry.** **Love much** **ZC**

Three months. It has been exactly three months and 19 days since she had last seen him. Slowly, like a curtain rising, the doors opened allowing her to see the people filing the hallway. She heard her father say something to them as Ben led her out of the lift. Towards…him. He was there. Right there in front of her. She couldn't drag her eyes away from his.

"Oh there you are!" Rachel said rushing towards them and engulfing Ben in a warm hug. "We've been worried"

"Just waited for Ben to join us" Ella mumbled making her way to greet Joey.

Joey, who was trying his best to not look at Emma. He smiled at her sister, embracing her softly. "How're you kiddo?"

"Same old, same old" Ella smiled. "Heard that you're finally settling down" She winked at him. Joey laughed muttering something incomprehensible under his breath.

Ross took a sip from his wine glass before saying, "Well, I for one, am so happy and excited that your uncle Joey has decided to get married. I must admit that I was getting a little antsy…but uhmm…"

Chandler looked at Ross as if he had lost his mind. "You won't start crying, will you?" Ross sniffled mumbling, "I don't know what you're talking about" He smartly went back to sipping his drink.

"Ben. My man" Joey said clapping him on his shoulder. "Congrats Jo!" Ben smiled, his eyes meeting Emma's. She nodded in reassurance.

And then it was finally her turn. "Emma" He whispered, his eyes trying to communicate everything he wasn't able to say.

"Joey" She simply said.

Then next thing she felt was his warmth. Joey had crushed her to him. "We need to talk" Joey whispered in her hair softly. She shook her head, untangling herself from his embrace. "We were done talking Jo" Her eyes welled up and she had to look up so that it won't brim over. "Congratulations!" Joey stood silent as she went to her father, who was still lapping at his drink.

"You're so emotional today" Ross said allowing her to sit on his lap, just like she used to do as a kid.

"Just happy, dad" She said closing her eyes and curling around her father.

Xxx

Rachel drummed her fingers on the table excitedly. "So….tell us about this special woman who managed to steal our Joey's heart oh so easily?" Chandler was grinning by the time she was done. "Oh ha ha that would be you"

Monica, Rachel and Ross stared at him. "Well you know…The first time?" When he was greeted with silence he continued on, "C'mon. Don't you guys remember? Rachel was Joey's first love!"

"Honey" Monica said in that calm, -stop talking or you'll be in trouble voice- "Know when to stop talking"

Chandler huffed turning his attention to Joey. "Who's the lucky lady?" He grumbled. Joey went to sit near Regina and scratched his head. "It's uh Sandra. My assistant"

"Wait was it love at first sight?" Ross squealed. "Oh haha, Ross likes romance and marriages" Ross said sarcastically. Mike grinned and mumbled, "Well it's only your 3rd marriage!"

"Exactly!" Ross jumped in and then shot Mike a look. "Wait that wasn't a compliment, was it?"

"Not even close" He confirmed.

Before Ross could retort, Rachel changed the subject. "Ross honey, Emma's has fallen asleep" It was true. Their first born was cocooned in his arm, exhaustion giving away into sleep.

Ross sighed, "Look at that. Sometimes she reminds me so much of her days as a newborn. Acts like a little child too. Joey, you remember?"

Both Ben and Ella turned to look at Joey. "Do you?" Ella said cheekily.

"Uh…yeah" Joey blushed beetroot. "Listen uh Ross. I'll take her to bed. It must not be very comfortable for her"

"Are you sure? I know I've said she's still a baby. But she has grown up"

Joey nodded before going to stand besides Ross. "I know" Then he lifted her up bridal style and walked towards his bedroom, a room which had once been theirs.

_He woke up to soft caresses. Caresses that was dipping lower and lower…until_

_"__Oh God" He heard a soft laughter and then her face came into view. "Nop. Just me" She grinned before scooping low to give him a kiss. "Good morning" She mumbled. _

_"__Are you sure you're OK with morning breath?" She grinned. "I don't mind them at all" Then she descended down his body._

_So low…_

_"__Oh yes, Emma" _

Joey gently laid her down. She cuddled closer to his hand in response. "Emma" He whispered while trying to gently tug his hand out of the death grip. After a trying for a while longer Joey gave up. He then gazed down at her. The blonde, beautiful hair that he loved to curl his hand around when he delves into her, was fanned around the pillow while some adorned her face. She looked like an angel.

She was an angel.

That was the exact reason why he had ended it in the first place. Why he was willing to let his heart, and her heart, break into a million pieces. He knew though. Knew that it wouldn't take long before she was back in his arms. So to stop that, as an extra measure, he had asked his assistant -who had been infatuated with him- to marry him.

Emma would never let him cheat. That was all the safety he needed.

"Baby, I need to go" Joey whispered uncurling her fist from his wrist.

"Don't go" She mumbled, her eyes half open.

They both knew that they weren't talking about him leaving the bed. She was asking him not to leave her. Not to marry someone else.

"I have to" He whispered. Joey then made move to kiss her forehead but then thought better of it. He stood up and walked towards the door leaving Emma behind.

Emma watched him retreat and then close the door, leaving her in darkness. Literally and metaphorically.

_What do you think will happen next? _


End file.
